Game box project: material testing

My magnets arrived yesterday, and I'm on to the next step in the process: testing materials. I ended up getting a lot of 3/16" diameter by 3/16" tall NdFeB (Neodymium) magnets, which I think will work great. The next step is to find a mounting structure. I'm going to be mounting them so that there is one magnet per 1/4" square on the board, as this is pretty much exactly the right size to make an 8-square by 8-square board on the bottom of the box. This configuration works best for many many many classic board games, the most common of which are checkers and chess.

So the problem becomes: How do I mount 3/16" magnets with a 1/16" gap between them, when they really want to stick to each other? The first thought I had was to get some thin wood and drill 3/16" holes in it at 1/4" intervals in both directions, so that the magnets can just sit in the holes and the wood will keep them apart. I still really like this idea, but I think it will be hard to find wood that will be sturdy enough to do this, and it also leaves me with the task of drilling the holes.

Yesterday at work I salvaged an old brochure holder, thinking that the clear plastic would be easier to work with than wood, and maybe a little sturdier (and it's clear plastic! Geek points!). Unfortunately, I discovered two things about it: 1) if you don't drill really slowly, the drill cracks the plastic instead of boring through it; 2) regardless of what you do, the plastic ends up melting to the drill bit.

So after cleaning off my father-in-law's 1/8" drill bit (this was before I realized that I had 3/16" magnets instead of 1/8" magnets), I decided that plastic is not the way to go for this project. I'll keep my eyes open for wood that might work.

Another idea I hit upon is using something that I can build a 'grid' out of that is 1/16" thick, so the magnets can sit between the grid which can mount inside the base of the tin. I was at a loss for what to do this with, until I hit upon the idea of popsicle sticks, which are 1/16" thick, almost exactly. So I'll have to test that method too. This may be easier, as it will involve less drilling (which requires a drill press), however it will also involve more cutting, as I'll have to get the popsicle sticks to interlock. And, the popsicle sticks will be deeper than the magnets (unless I cut them lengthwise - ugh) so they'll take up more room in the tin, and that's a minus.

Anybody have any other clever suggestions for how to rig this up, other than just breaking down and buying 1/4" magnets (which are decidedly more expensive)?

To see more about this project, check out the rest of my game tin project posts.

Things you learn eating citrus fruit

"Ow! Hey! When did I get a cut on my finger?"

Friday Lynx, 2009-11-20

Not much happening on the internet this week (hah!), so just a couple:

• First, and most important: If you haven't heard about the Manhattan Declaration, you really ought to go check it out and seriously consider signing it.
  
• Secondly, something for my in-laws, you know, the gun-crazy ones:
  

Sorry, no YouTube video this week. More internanity next week. Enjoy your weekend!

Frighteningly addictive

While this is normally a description I use for such things as Cookies 'n' Cream ice cream, cashews and heroin, I'm applying it to something different this evening.

Today I discovered a little game called Canabalt. Not surprisingly, there is a flash version, but there is also an iPhone app and a downloadable portable app which will install to a usb drive or anywhere else for that matter.

Are regular games just too hard to figure out? No worries with Canabalt. You have one choice: jump, or don't jump. Okay, so it's a little bit more complicated then that, since you also have to figure out how high to jump, and you have about a 10th of a second to make the right decision, but you really should give it a try.

My current record is 1950m, btw, so let me know when you beat that. Oh, and my personal nemeses are windows. If that sounds cryptic, try the game. You'll understand.

Edit: Within 5 minutes of posting this, I of course more than doubled my high score to 4280. Take that!
P.S.: The boxes aren't always your enemies.
/Edit
Edit again: To test the theory presented in the PS above, I did a couple of runs trying to hit every box. I made it 3360m before failing a jump. Hmmm...
/Edit

Late Lynx, 2009-11-12

I was going to post these last night, but forgot, so instead of Friday night links, you get Sunday morning links.

• I found this while looking up information on handstands. Looks like Damien Walters is another one of those urban ninjas.
  
• This was linked to from Ffffound. Don't get it? You obviously never played enough of this as a child.
  
• It looks like someone has finally found a proper use for one of Apple's mice.
  

Game box project: Material List

I am starting a new project to make a travel game board out of an Altoids tin. The first step - which is as far as I've gotten - is to start assembling materials. Here is what I have deduced so far:

• An Altoids tin - This will form the case to hold all the bits and pieces, as well as being the sturdy surface on which the game will be played.
  
• Magnets - The magnets will be mounted inside the tin, as a means of keeping the pieces in place on the board. I ordered a bunch of NdFeB ("rare earth") magnets from eBay, where I was able to find the size/shape I wanted, for a good price, with free shipping.
  
• Pieces - This is the current puzzle. I figure something like screws will work best, as they'll be about the right size (small enough to fit, large enough to grab) and ferro-magnetic (i.e. stick to magnets), but I haven't had a chance to pour through the aisles of hardware/craft stores to see what's available.
  
• Extra metal - I'm toying with ideas for making the box even more multi-function, but have to play with a few Altoid tins and lids to see what will work best. If nothing else, I'll want a metal plate covering the magnets in the bottom of the tin to keep everything else separate.
  
• Paint - cool as it may or may not be, I don't plan to leave the original Altoids paint job on the tin. I'm going to scrub it and repaint it, then probably lacquer it for a sturdyish finish.
  
• Alternate boards - at this point I don't know whether the alternate boards will be printed on card stock and then laminated, or whether I'll cut multiple metal pieces and paint the boards on them. But I'll either need card stock (got it) or metal (maybe got it). The metal will hold up longer. The card stock will be easier to produce.
  

BTW, does anyone know if Altoids sells tins anymore that aren't embossed? If not I'll have to try taking a hammer to one and see if I can pound the embossing out without screwing up the shape.

To see more about this project, check out the rest of my game tin project posts.

The Internet Explained: pwn

Pwn

Pronunciation: "Pone" (like 'own' but with a P on the front)
Meaning: to hand someone his ass in a funny, geeky or extreme way.
Usage: "Let's go pwn some n00bz!"
Derivatives:
PWNED! - often used as an interjection to bring to everyone's attention the fact that someone just got handed his ass.
Chowned! - a conglomeration of "PWNED!" and "chown" which is a UNIX command to change ownership of a file or folder. Meaning: to hand a computer it's ass; to hand someone their ass in an extremely geeky way.

Have some portion of the internet you need explained? Leave me a comment and I'll do my best to enlighten you!

Vulgarity: the opiate of the asses

See what I did there?

So after clicking through the link on my post about blocks to make sure it actually worked (yes, I proofreed my posts) I was reminded of a basic fact of humanity in general, and the interwebs specifically: If you give bored people free rein to express themselves they almost invariably degenerate to vulgarities.

As I was playing around with the letters and enjoying the apparent emptiness of the site, I started arranging the letters into a crossword, seeing how many of them I could use up before someone arrived and started moving them. I was doing pretty well (having managed to use both 'velociraptor' and 'quixotic') when someone showed up and started stealing my letters to make swear words, at which point I left to finish the post.

I must say that I admire the Bard in his ability to throw around some of the dirtiest lines penned in the English language, while still making them original and clever. See, boys, Shakespeare wasn't all about kissing and stuff. Willy FTW.

Movie Review: George of the Jungle (1997)

Let me start out by saying: I am a Brendan Frasier fan. I am not a hardcore Brendan Frasier fan, but I have been known to watch Brendan Frasier movies simply because I know he is in them. This list would include The Mummy, Journey to the Center of the Earth, Blast from the Past and Encino Man.

That being said, I think I owe it all to this little gem of a movie, George of the Jungle, and this movie has probably become one of my favorite movies of all time, in that stealthy, Princess Bride sort of way. You know: whenever you ask someone what their favorite movie is, they never say, "The Princess Bride", but whenever you mention it everyone says, "I love that movie!"

The Good:
- Brendan Frasier brings everything to this movie. Not only his goofiness, but his willingness to really sink in to the spirit of the character and, frankly, make a ham of himself
- Leslie Mann (Ursula), Thomas Haden Church (Lyle), John Cleese (Ape), and all the rest of the supporting actors likewise give themselves over to the roles and the genre and contribute to a totally cheesy but utterly worthwhile movie.
- Kids love this movie. Or at least, my kids love this movie, which is what matters to me. I can't tell you how many Saturday mornings this movie has gotten me through, because invariably mentioning George of the Jungle results in me being able to 'nap' on the couch for 90 minute while the kids bounce and jump.
- The movie is totally clean. Thanks to the genre of the movie, the worst word spoken on screen is 'poopie' - uttered by the horrible, stinky, really bad guy, Lyle. There are a couple of fart gags, but I don't have a problem with that.
- The soundtrack is excellent, and if it wasn't 'rare' (read 'expensive) I would own a copy.
- Okay, scratch that. I found a used 'good' copy on Amazon for under $9 with shipping. Buying....NOW.

The Bad:
- I got nothing.

Best Scene:
Okay, the best scene in the entire movie is the seduction scene at the waterfall. Once again, Brendan Frasier wholly commits to his role, and the background music (Marvin Gaye's "Let's get it on") comes in at the perfect moment.

Don't Miss:
- Lyle calling Kwame ("Quah-may") "Quaym".

Quotable Lines:
- "Funny lookin' fella." and also "Somethin' wrong with this fella!" - George
- "George go investigate!" - George
- "Meanwhile, at a very large and expensive waterfall set..." - Narrator
- "Pretty DARN good!" - George
- "Thank you Gunter, Gunner, Hans, Franz, and Phil." - Lyle

Personal Note:
Those of you who know my brother will find this funny: when the movie came out, the lead character was favorably compared with him, especially since he had just bleached his (long) hair for prom, and was prone to running around barefoot, although not (usually) bare-chested or sporting a 'butt-flap'.

Final Grade:
Overall, I'd have to give this movie an A+. The only way this movie fails is if you are looking for a serious or deep movie. Since that is rarely the case with me, I can find no fault with it, and whole-heartedly recommend it for your movie library.

1 + 1 = AWESOME!

We found a new cereal at Albertson's this weekend, and I have to ask, now that I've tried it, why it took a house brand to think of it. Everyone knows that the best part of Lucky Charms is the marshmallows, but you feel obligated to eat the boring part too. Well they finally replaced the boring crunchies with Cocoa Puffs! Behold, marshmallow cocoa crunchy puffs!